Weston General Hospital serves more than 200,000 people, but just one per cent of them made comments on four planned changes for its future.

North Somerset Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), which is in charge of what services the hospital offers, spent eight weeks asking for public opinion on four ideas to change surgical, A&E and critical care services at Weston’s hospital.

The CCG received around 2,000 comments, and Healthwatch North Somerset has just published a report collated them.

It says: “One key concern… was the closure of Weston General Hospital A&E.”

It goes on to say people are concerned about ambulance cover, staff recruitment and how other A&E departments will cope if Weston closes.

Healthwatch has recommended the CCG provides ‘greater clarity’ on the four ideas and how they will work in practice, and its report said there was ‘widespread misconception’ that the A&E was ‘at threat of closing completely’.

The CCG will now form a formal proposal for the hospital’s future, which will go in to more detail on each idea ahead of a public consultation period.